The dramatic revisiting of the era that gave birth to the Stonewall revolt of 1969 is a poignant reminiscence of the traumatic rites of coming out in an era before Facebook, cell phones, and our growing consensus about equal rights for people of alternative gender choices.

For me, scene after scene was a flashback to my own coming out in 1969 in the LA area. The events dramatized were an accurate portrayal of characters and the raw emotions and yes, the violence and the marginalization of those who could not be contained in the closet of anonymity.

Then as now, the unsettled issues of class and race permeated the nascent discontents that erupted in four days of rage and rebellion on Christopher Street in New York.Any retelling of the Stonewall Riot can’t be true to its roots without including a prologue that is an artistic replication of the human traits that define us as vulnerable to the social sanctions of the smug, sanctimonious and supercilious.

For those who did not live through the era of Stonewall this re-telling is a must see to be able to empathize with the lives of unsung heroes who in no small measure enabled the benefits of a less onerous path we follow today.

The Politics, Culture & Identity Lab at the University of California, Santa Cruz is looking to hire a field research coordinator and a field research assistant to assist with participant recruitment and data collection in Madera County and Kings County. The Community Climates Project is a research study that aims to better understand how young LGBTQ people negotiate the challenges of growing up in diverse communities in California, examining the resources available in their communities, as well as the link between community climate, stress, and the health of LGBTQ youth.

These positions are 10 and 20 hours/week with a starting wage of $16.63 and 18.98/hour. The duration of the positions is 10 months.

In 1961 KQED produced what is perhaps the first known documentary about homosexuality in the United States called "The Rejected." It's been lost – until now.

The film is hardly a flattering portrayal of the LGBTQ community. It frequently refers to homosexuality as a "problem" and the documentary is peppered with other derogatory words such as "unpleasant" and "terrible." But, does offer a glimpse into life in the early 60's.

Adjunct professor Beth Gonzales decided she won’t be returning to Fresno Pacific University next semester after a discussion she had with university President Richard Kriegbaum about gay marriage this week.

Disagreeing with school leaders’ vocal opposition to gay marriage, she asked Kriegbaum on Wednesday if she needed to resign.

“I agreed with her that it looked like the logical thing to do to resolve the issue of conscience,” Kriegbaum said.

This is the latest aftershock from an official Fresno Pacific blog post written by Kriegbaum in July titled “Being Christ-like in an Anti-Christian Culture” that helped clarify the university’s position on marriage following the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling protecting same-sex marriage.

“I was upset that there seemed to be an assumption that all Christians feel this way (about gay marriage) and I know that is not remotely true,” said Gonzales, who has worked at Fresno Pacific for over 21 years as director of the school’s handbell choir.

* At least two adjunct professors have resigned and another will not return next semester

The Bulldog Pride Fund, an endowed scholarship established under the auspices of the Fresno State Alumni Association, has announced its six scholars for the 2015-16 academic year. Sharing $12,000 equally are:

Ron Wilson was a tireless volunteer and generous benefactor of many local causes including the Bulldog Pride Scholarship Fund at Fresno State, Fresno Reel Pride Film Festival, Fresno Rainbow Pride Parade & Festival, and the no-longer active Central California Alliance.

In 2013, he was named a Legacy Donor by the Fresno State Alumni Association for his support of the Bulldog Pride Scholarship Fund. And, for his past service to Fresno Reel Pride, he was bestowed the honorary title Director Emeritus by the Board of Directors at the 25th Annual Film Festival the following year.

He was preceded in death by his longtime partner, Dan Jackson.

A Memorial Service will be held on Sat. Sept. 12th at 11:00 a.m. in the Jensen Library of the Smittcamp Alumni on the campus of Fresno State. Located at: 2625 E Matoian Way, Fresno, California 93740.

Memorial donations may be made to either the Bulldog Pride Scholarship Fund at Fresno State, or the Fresno Reel Pride Film Festival Endowment Fund.

Gay Fresno is currently seeking a highly motivated independent advertising sales representative. Ideal candidate is a professional who is self-motivated, growth-oriented, and passionate. Compensation will be commission only at a competitive rate (no salary). Also available openings in Tulare, Hanford, Porterville & Visalia.

Organization Overview: Locally operated as a not for profit since 2004, Gay Fresno is a division of Gay Community Network and operates community based websites in multiple Central Valley cities. Funds raised from advertising goto operating costs and towards our fund to become a non profit. See more about us at GayFresno.com

Position Summary: As an Independent Sales Rep, you will be responsible to locate and contact potential business accounts to advertise and market their company on our website(s). This position offers a flexible schedule - part time or full time.

Taylor Swift should be ashamed of herself for romanticizing brutal, mid-20th-century European colonialism in Africa with her new video “Wildest Dreams”!

Okay, so I don’t agree with that – at all. But in the Age of Outrage, where the level of supposed outrage tends to translate to clicks and Internet traffic, it’s white noise (no pun intended).

Pop culture’s main Pop Princess, Taylor Swift, recently released the beautiful Out of Africa-meets-1930s/40s-Vogue video for her song “Wildest Dreams.” We see her up against the backdrop of the “wild” African surroundings while donning gorgeous, timeless styles. I’m not a Swiftie, but I obviously liked the video, as did most viewers and critics.

End of story, right? Nope. This is 2015, remember? Outrage…OUTRAGE, I tell you!

Almost immediately, some writers jumped on the video as yet another example of an insensitive, white pop star carelessly hurting the feelings of all people of African ancestry, or something.

“[She] packages our continent as the backdrop for her romantic songs devoid of any African person or storyline,” wrote NPR contributing writer James Kasaga. “[She] sets the video in a time when the people depicted by Swift and her co-stars killed, dehumanized and traumatized millions of Africans. That is beyond problematic.”

Yes, by merely using the styles of Hollywood’s golden age in the wild plains of Africa, Swift is shoving colonialism in the faces of Africans. Huh? Not only is this quite the stretch – it ignores the fact that art is the ultimate subjective expression of human emotion.

For example, if I were to release a music video where I’m dressed as a Spanish missionary in the New World, it doesn’t automatically mean I’m making light of or celebrating the atrocities committed by Spanish colonists and conquistadors. It means I’m using the imagery to communicate a larger point with elaborate costumes.

I’m not in any way defending what European colonizers did to the people and lands of the African continent. I would never do that – colonialism does have a horrible, painful history. But that’s not what the damn song is about. Mid-20th century styles are used as glamorous props and the African landscape as a stunning, artistic expression of her song. Her video becomes the visual representation of her “Wildest Dreams.” She even donated money to the conservation of African wildlife and lands.

She did a lot in the video. She did not romanticize European colonial rule. She. Just. Didn’t.

Not one to miss out in the outrage culture, Mic was on the video for it’s social justice warrior beat. “The image of Africa as a frontier playground is on full display in Swift’s video,” wrote Zak Cheney-Rice. “Not a single black African person is present, let alone one of specified national origin from among the continent’s 54 countries.”

So Swift is acting like a careless, insensitive frontierswoman because she didn’t put any black Africans in her video….and she should be ashamed, or something. The point doesn’t hold up under scrutiny…but at the time of this blog post going up, it helped garner over a million Facebook likes. And that’s the whole point.

Outrage sells and boy does it generate likes, shares and clicks. Swift’s race makes the outrageous package irresistible because it crudely diminishes her art to an example of the rich and powerful white person exploiting the disenfranchised person of color. Again, this post isn’t about disregarding racism or colonialism. It’s about calling out clickbait masquerading as think pieces. Now that’s “problematic.”

Note: For those who don’t understand the title, it’s a lighthearted reference to one of the funniest movies ever made – “Mean Girls.”

EQCAI is working with Gay Central Valley of Fresno, and other LGBT and immigration groups, and health clinics to increase access to healthcare for LGBT and undocumented people in the Central Valley. Our aim is to engage and educate the broader community on the unique health needs of LGBT and undocumented individuals, and to advocate on behalf of undocumented people across California.

Equality California Institute and Gay Central Valley will be holding a Town Hall Meeting focused on “Healthcare Access for the LGBT and Undocumented Communities in Kern County”.

This event will be held on Thursday September 10th, from 6:00pm - 8:00pm at the Painted Table, which is located at 1211 N. Wishon Ave. Fresno, CA 93728.

More than a month after a transgender woman died after being stabbed on a Fresno street, law enforcement agencies are continuing to seek the person who attacked her.

K.C. Haggard, 66, of Fresno, who's been recalled as a "sweet" person, was seen on the surveillance video from a tattoo shop walking down North Blackstone Avenue early in the morning of July 23.

In the video, an SUV drove toward Haggard and stopped near her. Haggard walked over to the vehicle and appeared to talk for a few moments with someone inside. After someone jabbed at her throat, Haggard walked away and collapsed on the sidewalk.

An ambulance and a police car finally arrived several minutes after the attack, and she was pronounced dead at 2:52 a.m.

Fresno police Lieutenant Joe Gomez said in an email Tuesday, September 1 that no arrests have been made.

I remember the days when conservative religious groups loved their witch hunts. They would find people who were either gay or friendly to the LGBTQ community; then they would expose them, out them and ruin their lives. These groups toppled political figures, decimated careers and in some cases were the lead cause of suicide. It is my thought, shared by many others, that sometimes these groups were the reason that we were so slow in responding to the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Now that the tide has turned and of course, these groups are crying foul. A news article by the Portland Press Herald exposed seven major donors who tried to defeat marriage equality laws by donating to the National Organization for Marriage. Chris Plante, a director for NOM says that “it is a tactic of same-sex marriage advocates across the country to try to chill the free speech…We find there is a particular effort to attack and force retribution against those who stand in the public square.”

Seriously?!?

This group and other groups that have spewed hate and contempt for years are now saying that they are being discriminated against.

Other than the irony that makes me giggle – I also feel great about the strides that our society is making in recognizing sexual orientation equality. We are not 100 percent there yet but we are moving in the right direction. This article written even 10 years ago would have been slanted completely different.